So, in case you're one of the few people on this planet who don't own an iPod (because according to mainstream media everybody has one) you might have heard about their plan to offer unlimited downloads for their subscribers. This is obviously another step towards their goal of global consumer domination - everyone must own one eventually.Well, yes that's a pretty good deal, only they haven't decided how much it will be. Some think it could be a monthly subscription, for say $20 a month. Or it could be a flat fee of $100 that's included in the price when you buy one.
But you have to always be a subscriber to Apple products in order to keep listening to the music - the moment you decide you want to cancel, you don't get to keep the music. Call me crazy, but I think that's rotten. If I've paid for something, I should be able to keep a copy of it.
You could always burn an audio CD of anything you download and have a physical copy that way, but it seems to me that most people got rid of their physical CD libraries when they bought their mp3s players, so they don't want to clutter up their homes again.
Not to mention, that the quality of the files you download isn't as good as a physical CD copy anyways. And I don't own an iPod, so I can't verify the rumour that the battery wears out after 18 months, forcing you to buy a new one.
And today in the news, SONY/BMG has now announced they are working on plans to start their own online music distribution service, that will be compatible with existing music players. It's even "possible" that users could keep the music they buy, even after they are no longer customers. Oh, how generous.
This is SONY/BMG's next move since their MusicPass mp3 download cards are not doing well. Have you seen these? They look like credit cards, graced with album artwork of the SONY artist in question (Celine Dion, Avril Lavinge, Bruce Springsteen, Elvis, etc). They cost $12.99 and I've seen them in practically every retail store.How they work is you buy the card, take it home, log on to their website, type in the security information, and boom - you get to download the album (with a few piddly extras) in mp3 format.
Um...I'm sorry to point out the obvious, but if I go to a record store, I'm looking to buy a physical CD, not something I have to take home and download, using my own computer and bandwidth. For less than $12.99, I can buy the real CD, with artwork I can actually hold, listen to on any of my CD players, and make copies of for myself. Or I can sell it to a used-record store...something the labels don't like, and that online downloading curbs.
It's not like SONY/BMG are offering out-of-print albums that are 'not worth their investment' to produce mass copies to put in record stores - these are only fully available, recent releases by major label artists.
Why would they do such a wasteful thing? WHO is going to buy it? People who buy their music online will do it at home and add it to their growing library of albums they bought online, already installed on their computer. They will not go to a store to buy a card, and register with a brand new website to give them access to one single album. I really don't get it.
But then again, I'm from the generation of music listeners that remember where they bought every CD, record or tape and all the memories that are associated with them. My record collection just isn't a collection of music, it's a scrapbook of memories and feelings. I will never get misty over something I downloaded.
Seriously, we should just go back to cassette walkmans. Oh, and just when I thought MAD TV wouldn't have anything clever to say:
currently listening to: Colin Hay - "Man @ Work", Leona Naess albums, Malibu - "Robo-Sapiens", Ray Montford - "A Fragile Balance"
